1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a new and distinctive, plum cultivar advantageously combining desirable characteristics of Japanese and native plum species and which is adapted to northern latitudes.
2. Background
Plums are a desirable fruit for fresh consumption or for use in cooking and baking, being suitable for canning, freezing, and being preserved in jams and jellies. Plums are typically borne on small to medium-sized trees having ovate or elliptic leaves with acute or obtuse tips and short petioles. The flowers of plum trees are similar to those of peaches, but are white, smaller, and have longer pedicels. The lateral and lower buds are found primarily on one-year old wood and on two-year and older spurs. The flower buds open to produce a typical few-flowered fascicle. However, in some cases, may flowers (florets) can be produced from a single bud. Plum fruit is classified as a drupe. Relevant classifications of plums include European and Japanese cultivars.
‘Lydecker’ plum was developed using cherry plum (‘Oka’) as the female parent. The primary hardy species in cherry plum is P. besseyi, the western sand cherry, which can withstand more severe winters and drought and which also ripens generally one month earlier than P. americana, a native wild plum commonly used in hybridization. However, P. besseyi has more astringent, smaller fruit and is more susceptible to some diseases. Using the cherry plum as the female parent took advantage of potential maternal effects on winter hardiness. Careful selection of a giant-fruited P. salicina (‘Z's Blue Giant’) as the male parent in the cross was required to circumvent the need to backcross to achieve larger fruit size, yet retain earliness and winter hardiness from the maternal parent in the process. The resultant ‘Lydecker’ plum is 2 to 4 weeks earlier than any other large, quality plum for the Midwest and has performed very well in winter hardiness tests.